


Is This Becoming a Habit?

by SamJoinedtheReconCorps



Series: Maybe It Is [2]
Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: AU, Bets & Wagers, F/F, F/M, Flashbacks, Hospital, M/M, Mild Language, POV First Person, POV Jean Kirstein, Physical Therapy, Swearing, college aged, eventual angst, physical therapist! Jean, sweethearts
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-06-19
Updated: 2015-06-19
Packaged: 2018-04-05 04:31:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,613
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4165992
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SamJoinedtheReconCorps/pseuds/SamJoinedtheReconCorps
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Jean's been assigned with a new patient and guess who's their grandson.<br/>Maybe Jean can even help the guy get through whatever rough patch he's going through...<br/>In which Marco is the grandson of Jean's latest patient and Jean can't seem to keep things strictly medical-personnel-and-relative-of-patient. But hey at least Marco's cousins seem to like Jean...that has to be good, right?</p>
            </blockquote>





	Is This Becoming a Habit?

**Author's Note:**

> Welp ta-da! Here's Jean's POV! And only after a day...if only this I could keep this up...
> 
> I hope you guys like it!

                _Bzz bzz. Bzz bzz. Bzz bzz._

_“Don’t get too close, it’s dark inside: it’s where my demons hide, it’s where my demons hide-“_

I cracked my eyes open and saw my phone vibrating, it’s screen shining as it rang, waiting to be picked up. _Why the fuck call me now when I was asleep?_ I groaned, particularly annoyed and sorely tempted to ignore the call and roll right back over and go to sleep. However, I knew that whatever it was probably wasn’t something that _should_ be ignored, so I reached over and grabbed my phone.

                _Lance_ , my phone read, and underneath, the time: 12:43 am. _This better be fucking good,_ I yawned, swiping the green answer key and putting my phone to my ear with a curt, “What?”

                “Ah, Jean, thank God you answered,” Lance said, sounding rushed, “Look, little bro, I was just wondering if you could do me a favor…”

                I glanced over at my alarm clock: 12: 44 am. “What is it?” I growled, more than a little grouchy.

                “The hospital called,” he seemed to let out the next part all in one breath, “andIneedaridetothehospital.”

                “You have a car,” I deadpanned, completely wanting to just hang up the phone right then and there.

                “It’s at the mechanic’s,” he answered.

                “What about Di’s?” I said, reminding my brother, Doctor Lance, that he was married to a novelist who also owned a car.

                Lance sighed, “She’s been up for like 3 days straight, finishing her manuscript. She just fell asleep in her study this afternoon,” there was rummaging on his side of the line, probably him putting on his clothes or something, “it took all I could to get Jess, Adolfo, and Andi away so she could sleep. I really don’t want to wake her up while I’m looking for her keys in the study.”

                I pinched the bridge of my nose. _Of course_ my sister-in-law would go through days without sleep to finish her book. She was really lucky that I liked her, or else I wouldn’t give two shits whether or not she got enough sleep. “Be ready in 10,” I finally said.

                “Thanks man, I owe you,” Lance replied, ending the call.

                “You really do owe me,” I grumbled, dragging myself out of bed and into my closet to grab my clothes and go.

* * *

 

                “So, what happened this time?” I asked as Lance climbed into my mustang.

                He strapped himself in, “An older woman had a stroke, they’ve already given her the medication she needs but I’m needed to monitor dosage for the rest of the night and assess any damages to her nervous system, as well as determine what rehabilitation regimes would best suit her.”

                “See all I hear is ‘old lady had stroke, blah blah, medical speak, blah blah, rehab’,” I commented, easing my way out of Lance’s driveway and back onto the road, making my way to the SHARP Chula Vista Medical Center where my brother worked at.

                “That, little brother, is because all you care about is rehabilitation,” Lance smiled, “I’m glad you actually like the profession you’ve chosen.”

                “It’s great, the pay’s nice,” I said, trying to sound devoid of emotion.

                “Oh, whatever, I know you love helping people,” Lance crooned. I just shot him a glare. “Don’t worry, your secret’s safe with me,” he assured, “plus, if you want, I can recommend this patient to you for her physical therapies, that way you won’t have to wait to just substitute or fight over a patient.”

                “All right, Lance! Now that’s what I call repaying a favor,” I grinned, “but I’ll still be stuck as co-pilot since I’m still an ‘assistant’ physical therapist, or as everyone else sees me, an intern.”

                “You’ll do great, you know Hanji knows you’re more than ready to help a patient without any of the senior staff,” Lance stated. We pulled into the hospital’s parking lot just then and I began to drive Lance up to the front door when he asked, “Jean, um…do you think you could stick around? Until I’m done?”

                “Lance, no,” I whined, “I’ve got work tomorrow and I can’t just stay here all night.”

                “It won’t take more than 2 hours,” Lance promised, “and I can get you the rights to the couch in the staff lounge. No one will bother you, no one will make any noise: you can just sleep.”

                I bit the inside of my cheek, seriously considering the offer and weighed my options: nice warm bed at home or couch in a busy hospital. “Dude,” I began, about to reveal that my bed was 1000 times more appealing than a hospital couch, when I made the mistake of looking at him. He was pulling the stupid puppy eyes: those same stupid green eyes that usually got me into a lot of trouble when I was a kid. “Okay, I’ll stay,” I sighed. Lance brightened considerably. “Just _do not_ wake me up until it’s time to go. Got it?”

                “Yes, sir,” Lance laughed, “I’ll try to get this patient all settled in, submit a recommendation and then we’ll be on our way!”

* * *

 

                I lazily rubbed at my face, trying to block out the light from my bedside lamp. _Did I leave it on?_ I pondered, opening an eye and glancing off to my left. I sat up. This wasn’t my room.

                Suddenly, last night came rushing back: Lance’s phone call, the drive to the hospital, and finally ended with me collapsing on the couch in the lounge (which was a lot more comfortable than it sounded). Sun was streaming in through the window, signaling that it was obviously morning. I reached into my pants pocket and pulled out my phone. 9: 52 AM. Levi was going to have my head for being so fucking late to work.

                “Shit,” I whispered, quickly shoving my phone back into my pocket and jumping off the couch, almost missing the note that had been left beside a box of Chinese take-out that was sitting on the coffee table. I turned back to the box and picked up the note, which I immediately recognized was from Lance given his signature lazy scrawl:

_Jean,_

_I talked to Levi and had him schedule you to work the afternoon shift. Don’t get mad at me, it’s just that I really didn’t want to wake you up and I just decided that I’d go and check on my other patients – so in other words, I checked in to work really early. The shift’s over at 2, so you can just drop me off at home before going to the Rehab Center. You can do whatever you want until then. I also brought you some food, so eat up._

_-Lance_

That asshole. I sat back down on the couch letting out a frustrated huff of air. He knew that I wasn’t too fond of working the afternoon shift because that practically ensured that Levi would be all over my ass for every little thing since Hanji and Petra weren’t there to keep him from being too exigent. _At least Lance had the decency of bringing me some breakfast_ , I thought, reaching over to grab the box of take-out.

                I ate and contemplated what I’d do until 2. There was always volunteering to take flowers to patient’s rooms, a task which I’d always done when I was little and my brother came to volunteer to do other things. _Yeah…I’ll probably do that_ , I mused, taking a bite of chow mein and thinking about how I would get Lance to repay this latest favor.

* * *

 

                “Shit, shit, shit, shit,” I groaned, trying to walk as fast as I could through the hospital without it being considered _running_. _Where the fuck was Lance?_ I checked the time 2: 17 pm. It was about a half hour drive to SHARP Memorial Hospital: my shift starts at 3. And I still have to drop off my fucking brother at his house. Oh this bitch will _pay_ if I’m late to work.

                I shot him a quick text:

                **To: Big Bro**

                **Lance where the fuck are you**

**From: Jean**

The response came a few seconds later:

                **To: Jean**

**Listen dude right now I’m prescribing some medication for a patient. Give me 20 mins.**

**From: Big Bro**

This bitch was definitely making me late to work.

                I decided it’d be best if I _personally_ went and got him, so I made my way to the 3rd floor completely foregoing the elevator and instead taking the stairs two at a time. Getting to the 3rd floor, I was still swearing under my breath when I turned a corner and ran into a solid wall of boy.

                “Watch where you’re fucking going,” I snapped, already in a foul mood because Lance was probably going to make me late. Again.

                About to sidestep around the guy, I was brought up short when he responded with a meek, “Oh – sorry,” and a sniffle. The dude actually _sniffled._ I stopped, turning to look at who I’d just ran into and caught him wiping a hand across his face - _Wait was this guy…crying?_

                I immediately felt like a complete ass for what I’d said and tried to compensate by asking, “Hey – are you okay?”

                He seemed to hesitate for a fraction of a second before he shook his head, not even trying to hide the fact that he was upset. “Do you know where the cafeteria’s at?” he asked feebly.

               “Yeah, it’s down on the ground floor – C’mon, I’ll take you,” I added, trying to seem helpful, “I’m leaving anyway.” I seriously wanted to make it up to this guy. I turned down the hall, making sure he was following – which he was, albeit a little reluctantly and at a slower pace – until we got to the elevator. We both climbed in and I pressed the button for the ground floor. The guy was still sniffling in the corner, and the initial silence was slowly driving me up the wall, so before I could stop myself I blurted out, “What’s wrong?”

               It took a few more beats of silence before he answered with a quiet, “It’s my grandma,” and finally turned to look at me. His eyes were a bit bloodshot and glassy from the crying, but he had – what on any other day would have probably been warm – brown eyes. Freckles dusted his features, trailing down his neck and his dark hair was messy – he probably hadn’t even brushed it today given his grandma just died –

                Oh. _Oh._ Did I just fucking curse at someone whose grandma just _died?_

                “I’m so, so sorry,” I clambered, trying to convey my condolences and very much trying to show that I wasn’t made of 100% all-natural asshat.

                Then, he did something really weird. He _smiled._ “She’s not dead,” he said as his smile actually grew a little wider, “I’m actually really, really happy since doctors are saying that she’s okay.” He stopped at that, taking a deep breath and looking down at himself, “I was just so worried and scared…I guess this is me just letting it all out.”

                I let that thought sit for a second. “Oh, okay,” I finally said, feeling relieved that I hadn’t involuntarily kicked someone while they were down. Or, well, I was relieved I hadn’t _unknowingly_ kicked someone while they were down.

                We stayed quiet for a little bit – until there was a loud, guttural growl rivaling the sound of the rumble of an oncoming storm.

                I turned to the guy, slightly alarmed, and caught him giving me an embarrassed smile. “Yeah, I, uh, haven’t eaten because of how worried I’ve been,” he scratched the back of his head sheepishly, “So, I’m more than a little hungry.”

                “Obviously,” I commented, looking down at his stomach before turning my eyes back to him and catching him yawning. I smirked, seeing the light blush creeping up his face that was a usual sign that someone needed a nap. “Apparently, someone’s also a little sleepy,” I crooned.

                “Stress doesn’t give time for sleep, either,” he replied. “Which is why I’m planning on getting myself some c-aw-fee,” he continued with a yawn.

                I jumped at the opportunity to redeem myself. “Look, lemme buy you the coffee,” I said, “you still seem really shaken up. Besides, it’s the least I can do after having been such a – y’know,” I almost choked when I admitted out loud what I said next, “such an asshole.”

                “Oh – thanks.” He gave me a watery smile. “Honestly, I probably wouldn’t have known how to order it since I haven’t had coffee before, so thanks for the save,” he finished with a laugh.

                That can’t be right. _Haven’t had … coffee … before?_ It vaguely registered in my brain that the elevator had lurched to a stop. _N-no coffee before?_

                Out of my peripheral vision I could see the guy already walking out of the elevator, turning around after taking a few steps and waving in my direction. The words “Hello? Earth to stranger” barely made it through the foggy haze that was currently short circuiting my brain.

                It wasn’t until the elevator dinged and began to close on me that I jumped – literally – out of the elevator. “Wait – you’ve never had coffee before?” I asked him, completely awed with the fact that this human being that was probably my age had _never_ drank the fuel that was getting me through life.

                “Nope,” he responded casually, as if he weren’t some anomaly in the very fabric of the universe itself. _Never had coffee – geez this guy must run on pure sunlight or something._ He then added with some afterthought, “Well, I’ve had it before – like a little sip here and there, but I’ve never really drank an actual cup of coffee.”

                _Alright – while still seeming far-fetched – this seemed more plausible._ I was still really impressed. “How have you gone through your life without the mana from the gods?”

“I’m more of a tea person,” he said with a shrug. “Coffee’s too bitter for my taste.” He looked around, and then began making his way towards the general area of the cafeteria. “But, that’s probably what’ll help keep me going till later,” he finished.

                 Snapping out of my stupor, I jogged to catch up. “Hold up,” I said, now completely bewildered, “you cannot be telling me that you are going to get your first cup of coffee at a _hospital_?”

                “Do you have a better idea?” he asked.

                “Actually,” I began with a smile, “I do. Come with me.” I turned on my heel and began walking down the corridor, occasionally glancing behind me to make sure that he was still following me. “Okay,” I said when we got to the lobby, immediately going to one of the empty seats and patting it, “Sit here.” Before I ran off, I caught the look of hesitancy on his face, showing that he wasn’t too sure about just sitting around till I did whatever I was going to do. So, I managed a simple “I’ll be right back” hoping that was promise enough.

                Then, without a second glance, I ran out of the lobby, taking out my cell phone to check the time. It’d only been about 5 minutes since Lance had sent me his last text, so I had about 15 minutes – if Lance even kept his word. The closest Starbucks was around the corner, about 10 minutes from here; 5 if I ran. _Thank God I still keep up with my basketball training,_ I thought as I began to jog, mentally running through the Starbucks menu through my head. I had to have a game plan ready if I was to make it out of there quickly. A caramel frappuccino seemed like the best bet for someone who didn’t drink coffee given that it was too bitter – it had that nice sweetness that balanced out the bitterness, plus, it was cold, which helped combat the California heat. _It was my first Starbucks drink, too,_ I remembered. _Hopefully he likes it just as much as I did._

* * *

 

                My timing was actually pretty freaking great: 25 minutes. I’d even gotten him a few cookies since he’d said he was hungry. Hope he likes chocolate chip.

                I walked back into the lobby – I’d never been more thankful for AC in my life, the heat was killing me – and found that whom I was going to bestow these gifts upon was fast asleep. I weighed the pros and cons of walking the guy up, but ultimately chose to wake him up given that I’d get to see his reaction when he took a swig from this bad boy.

                “Ba-ack,” I announced in a singsong voice, causing him to stir in his sleep. He cracked an eye open at which I snapped my fingers in front of his face to help wake him up faster.  “Dude, you _must_ be 100% awake to fully appreciate your first cup of coffee.”

                “Took you long enough,” he yawned, rubbing at his eyes.

                “It’s not like the nearest Starbucks is down the street.” A little white lie, but he didn’t need to know that the nearest Starbucks was pretty much down the street. I pushed the frappuccino into his hands. “Now, _drink_ ,” I said excitedly, taking a seat in a chair across from him. Oh my gosh this was going to be _soooo_ good.

                 He sat up a little straighter and took a sip. And his reaction was almost _instantaneous_. Maybe I was overreacting, but I swear I saw his pupils dilate.

                 However, _seeing_ that he liked it and _hearing_ that he liked it were two totally different things, so I just had to ask: “Did you like it?”

                 He gave me an actual grin this time as he responded with an enthusiastic “Yeah! This is actually super delicious!” He took another sip and looked at the drink as if he were trying to figure out how they made it taste so good. I was mentally congratulating myself for my great Starbucks selection when his eyebrows furrowed and he said “Thanks,” then he paused, glancing back down at the cup. “John…?” he finished tentatively.

                 The smile I knew I’d been wearing fell off my face in about .43 seconds flat. “Leave it to Starbucks to fuck up my name,” I sighed, knowing I should have seen it coming since they _always_ mess up my name. “It’s actually Jean,” I corrected.

                “ _Jean,_ ” he said, mimicking my enunciation in an attempt to get it right – which he did. I smiled at him encouragingly. He tilted his head and asked, “French?”

                “On my dad’s side, yeah,” I answered. Then, realizing I still didn’t know this stranger’s name I curiously asked, “What’s your name?”

                “Marco,” he responded. “Marco Bodt,” he finally “introduced” himself, outstretching his hand.

                I shook it with a smile, “Pleasure to ‘meet’ you, Marco.”

                My smile was short lived however since it was fucking _gone_ when my phone rang. I glanced down at it, afraid to look at the time: 2:50. “Fuck.” _Levi was going to kill me._ “I-I have to go,” I blurted out as I jumped to my feet. I was about to just take off when I realized I still hadn’t even given him his cookies. “Here,” I said, putting the small box of cookies into his hands.

                He began to reach into his pants pocket as he said, “Just the drink would have been fine,” but I immediately stopped him.

                “Nope, no, you aren’t going to pay me back.” It seemed like he wanted to protest so I continued in a rush, “You looked really upset – and I was rude as fuck to you when you were super upset – and you haven’t eaten. Just take them, dude.”

                “O-okay,” he said, finally accepting the treats. “Thanks, Jean,” he grinned.

                “You’re very welcome, Marco,” I responded, already making my way to the lobby doors. I did turn to give him one last reassuring smile. “I hope your grandma gets better,” I called out, heading back into the unrelenting heat.

                It didn’t take me long to find my mustang – and my brother, just leaning up against it as if he were some handsome protagonist in a movie. “Jesus, Jean, I thought you didn’t want to be late.”

                “Lance, don’t push it,” I barked, already having come to terms that I was going to die at Levi’s hands for being late. Again. Because of Lance. Fuck, Lance really got me into deep shit all the time.

                “What took you so long anyway?” he asked as we climbed into my car.

                “Nothing,” I answered curtly. However, I couldn’t keep a small smile from tugging at my lips as I remembered the look on Marco’s face when he took his first sip of the frappucino. “I just made a quick Starbucks run, is all.”

                “And you didn’t get me _anything_?” Lance whined.

                I rolled my eyes. “No, Lance, I did not bring you anything. And if I were you I’d stop whining because, _trust me,_ I _will_ kick you out of my car and make you walk home.”

He stopped complaining with an audible huff and a quiet, “If _I_ would have made a Starbucks run _I_ would’ve brought you something.” But I completely ignored him, instead letting my mind think about Marco and his contagious laughter. Sure, I’d only heard it once, but it was something that I honestly wouldn’t mind hearing again. _If only I could have gotten him to cheer up a little more_ , I mused, _his laughter had a really nice ring to it_.

**Author's Note:**

> (Jean just met Marco and he's already head over heels for him pass it on.)
> 
> So, what'd you think? Hopefully I get around to adding another chapter to this soon.
> 
> Hope you liked it! Thanks for reading!


End file.
